Erasing My Husband Ten Years Early

Two days before I was supposed to hand in my resignation and step into the quiet, protected life of a stay-at-home wife, I stumbled across a post on a forum.

The prompt was blunt: "Who is the most pathetic woman you’ve ever met?"

The top-voted reply made the blood drain straight from my face.

"Easy. My idiot wife."

"Only child. Rich parents with prime real estate. And she actually bought the lie that I loved her."

"Walked away from her high-paying corporate gig just to keep my house clean, wait on my folks hand and foot, and pop out a son for my family name."

"Her folks died early, left the whole estate to her. Took a little sweet-talking to get my name on the deed, then had her sign a few ‘standard financial agreements.’"

"Walked away with every single dime. Kicked her out without a cent. Left her begging on her knees just to catch a glimpse of the kid."

"Now she’s a crazy bag lady rummaging through dumpster bins in the cold, screaming to anyone who’ll listen that I was a social climber who bled her family dry. Ha! Like anyone would ever believe a lunatic."

My heart plummeted into an abyss.

I was an only child.

And only two nights ago, my husband had wrapped his arms around me from behind, burying his face in my neck, murmuring softly: "Babe, you’re running yourself ragged at the office. Hand in your notice. Let me take care of you from now on."

Worse still: I was currently preparing to give up my career, entirely convinced that doing so was the ultimate act of love.